


Another Name For It

by ausmac



Category: Stargate Atlantis
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-14
Updated: 2016-09-14
Packaged: 2018-08-15 00:29:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 517
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8035000
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ausmac/pseuds/ausmac
Summary: Courage can have many names, and Ronon can recognise it even in unexpected places.





	Another Name For It

He was eating a solo lunch in the mess hall and contemplating nothing more serious than the relative benefits of ham over turkey; McKay was at the counter complaining loudly about something to do with the food and, out of habit, Ronon zoned him out. As he did, he caught a snatch of conversation from a table behind him. The voices were unfamiliar and a casual glance at a nearby glass wall section showed the reflection of marine uniforms.  
  
"...and I dunno how that McKay guy gets on the first team. He's a total loser."  
  
A second male voice chuckled. "Yeah, I heard about him from another guy. Seems he's a real squirrel, afraid of his own shadow. Must be a joy to guard his ass."  
  
Anger swirled up out of his gut and he turned, eyes narrowing as he focused on the three marines. They were big men, all wearing standard ops gear, fit and young and, in a fight, he figured it would take about thirty seconds to take them down.   
  
Ronon slid his chair next to the nearest, startling them all to silence. "You're an idiot," he said, calmly furious. "Not just an idiot, but a fool. If you make those kind of judgment calls in combat, you won't last a day in Pegasus."  
  
The first man straightened and glared. "I wasn't talking to you."  
  
"No, but I'm talking to you. That man," he said softly, pointing to where McKay was arguing with one of the cooks, "is ten times smarter than you, or me, for that matter. He knows the odds. He thinks all the time. He knows how things are gonna go, how likely he is to die every day, and it doesn't matter because he just keeps going." He sneered at the flushed faces. "Any fool with a gun can be a big man. Bravery is when you know where you stand, and you keep fronting up anyhow." He turned away and stood, looking down at the silent marines in more ways than one. "A hero is someone who fights even when they're afraid. You are a fool if you don't know that."  
  
He grabbed his water and walked across the room to where McKay had finally sat with his lunch. Rodney looked up and grinned. "Ronon! You finished eating?"  
  
"Yeah, but I'll stay for a drink."  
  
"They promised me chocolate pudding today. I was really looking forward to it." He sighed and started forking up his salad. "Life's frequently unfair, y'know."  
  
Ronon nodded. "Yeah, but there's always tomorrow."  
  
McKay frowned. "No, they've got lemon meringue pie. They do it just to get at me, of course. Someone would like me to eat it and die horribly. I can see it now, my tombstone, killed by a pie in the Pegasus Galaxy."  
  
Ronon's lips twitched as he let Rodney ramble on. He considered that once he'd thought like those marines, but time was a great teacher. Mckay had whined and whimpered and cursed and complained through a hundred disasters, but he'd fought on nonetheless. Courage was just another name for it.


End file.
